It is a martial arts film about a stolen Buddha statue from a small Thai village and the efforts of a young man who is determined to retrieve and return it to it's home. It is in Thai and English with English subtitles.

"Ong Bak" refers to a Buddha statue kept in the Nong Pra du temple in rural Thailand. One night a former villager Don (Wannakit Siriput) returns home to steal Ong Bak the head of the Buddha, on behalf of a gangster boss Khom Tuan. The sacred head must be recovered otherwise it can cause catastrophes, according to the villagers. The locals seek a champion to retrieve the lost statue.

Ting (Tony Jaa) is an orphaned young man raised at the local temple and schooled in the ancient "Nine Body Weapons" of Muay Thai, which is royal war art that is so lethal in it's purest form. He has promised his master that he will never use his skills to hurt anyone to make any profit out of it. The villagers seek the help of Ting to recover the Ong Bak. He agrees to take the assignment in order to save the village and villagers. 

Ting travels to Bangkok, where he finds the head of Ong Bak in the possession of the gang boss Khom Tuan. To recover the Buddha head, Ting is forced to make deals with guys like George and Muay Lek. He has to get involved in many fistfights and street battles. In the end, he comes face to face with Khom Tuan in an encounter in a cave. Ting has to use all his mental and physical power to overcome his powerful opponent.

Director Prachya Pinkaew has skillfully crafted a classic Thai martial arts, action film. He masterfully combines an epic tale with martial arts. He narrates the story with aesthetic brilliance and lyricism. The movie is a tribute to the martial arts genre. The action scenes are very impressive. The display of old school actions with gritty fights are excellent.

Tony Jaa is extremely talented in Maui Thai. He could be the next big thing like Jackie Chan. The film is all about Jaa. He displays his talent with fierce passion and brutal grace.28 year old Jaa started training in martial arts when he was eight with the hopes of getting into movies. For sure, this will be a decade of Jaa. It is a classical movie of Thai myth, a perfect combination of art and entertainment, filled with charm and animatic grace. It is the first Thai film to break through the martial arts category. Martial arts fans will love it and even if you are not a fan of martial arts, still you may enjoy it.

We rate this movie GOOD.